


The Auction

by Kaatyr



Category: Hunter X Hunter
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Audio Format: MP3, Gen, One Shot, Podfic Available
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-04
Updated: 2020-07-04
Packaged: 2021-03-04 21:15:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 647
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25062991
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kaatyr/pseuds/Kaatyr
Summary: Before Kurapika can obtain his Hunter licence, he's captured.
Comments: 1
Kudos: 11





	The Auction

**Author's Note:**

> This chapter is available in audio form for those who would prefer to listen rather than read. Please note that this is a text to speech recording, which means that there may be some issues with it.
> 
> [Stream or download MP3 from Google Drive](https://drive.google.com/file/d/1SN6-y4bgLG-CZW_GlsKmGQatFSsxkpsq/view?usp=sharing)

The auctioneer’s voice was too loud. Kurapika’s head ached and his eyes stung and burned as tears slid intermittently down his cheeks. He had no control over the tears. They came without warning, a visible mark of his shame and distress.

The price climbed higher and higher. The number was so high that Kurapika could not even comprehend it. He supposed that he should be flattered that he was apparently worth so much.

But the well-dressed people sipping on their expensive wines and champagnes, adorned in jewels and sporting stylish haircuts, were worth nothing in Kurapika’s eyes. He hated them. His hate burned in his heart with the same heat that surged in his eyes. His burning, scarlet eyes. The eyes that had the crowd of wealthy buyers so excited.

There were times when, while curled up in the cage that had been his prison for the last few months, Kurapika had seriously contemplated tearing out his own eyes. He’d be worthless to these people without them.

But the rage burning in Kurapika’s chest had always stopped him. He had a mission to complete before he could allow himself to die. He had to return his clan-mates’ eyes to them before he could rest.

He’d had a plan: to get a Hunter licence and work his way into the employment of a wealthy household. To bribe, blackmail, buy or steal in order to retrieve the scarlet eyes. To even kill, if he had to.

And he would also find the Phantom Troupe, the monsters who had taken those eyes in the first place — and kill all of them.

But Kurapika’s plan had quickly fallen apart. A group of Hunters had noticed Kurapika’s eyes, and hunted _him_. Only thirteen years old, and lacking the experience and skill of the Hunters, Kurapika had been caught.

The chains bit harshly into Kurapika’s wrists, keeping his hands bound behind his back. He’d thought he could slip out of them, but they moved like snakes, coiling tighter and tighter as he struggled. Was it some sort of magic?

His eyelids had been pried open and taped, ensuring that everyone got a good look at the burning red irises. Every time Kurapika managed to get his rage down to a simmer and the colour began to fade, the sharp crack of a whip brought it back to a spitting sizzle. Blood had begun to seep through the thin fabric of his clothes.

“Sold!” the auctioneer called gleefully. Kurapika did not even know who had purchased him. It really didn’t matter, anyway. He’d likely have to kill that person at some point in the very near future. He could hardly accomplish his goals while languishing in captivity.

Kurapika was led out of the auction room and into a small back room where he was pushed down onto a chair by one of his guards. The Hunter ripped the tape from Kurapika’s eyelids, causing Kurapika to yelp in pain. The Hunter grinned down at him, savage and satisfied.

“You’ve made us a shitload of money, scarlet eyes,” he said. “No hard feelings, right?”

Kurapika’s response hissed out between dry lips like a snake's forked tongue, his words laced with venomous hate.

“I suggest you spend that money quickly. You won’t have much time to enjoy it.”

His voice was weak, but his words held an unwavering conviction. The Hunter’s grin faltered as he stared down into Kurapika’s eyes, which were still as red as blood. Then he snorted and turned his back on Kurapika.

“Enjoy those eyes while you have them, kid,” he said.

Kurapika sucked in a breath, as sharp as a knife. He closed his eyes, as if his eyelids could somehow protect his eyes from harm.

But the darkness behind his eyelids was a hell all its own. It was where his clan-mates currently wandered, lost without their eyes to guide them.


End file.
